


Earning Trust

by InRaosLight



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: (all off screen not on screen and no real details), Background Alex/Lucy - Freeform, F/F, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kara Danvers isn't Supergirl, More medical inaccuracies than Grey’s Anatomy but I tried, National City knows aliens exist, but she is Kryptonian, medical AU, mentions of cadmus like labs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-07-31
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:02:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25465135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InRaosLight/pseuds/InRaosLight
Summary: Kara is a pediatric surgeon. Cat is the head cardiothoracic surgeon. When the hospital’s newest patient comes into the ER, they must work together to help her. In and out of surgery.
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Cat Grant
Comments: 16
Kudos: 132
Collections: SuperCat Christmas in July 2020





	Earning Trust

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Onehellagaykid](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Onehellagaykid/gifts).



It’s a quiet day in the pediatric wing, something Kara finds herself grateful for. All their patients are doing well, and there are no major surgeries scheduled for the next week. Even the minor surgeries on the board aren’t for a few days. There are no terminal patients, and all the children staying in the wing have great support systems that visit every day. As much as Kara loves the feeling of accomplishment that comes from saving a life, she’s more than happy on the days she doesn’t have to.

With a quick quirk of her head, Kara makes her hourly round of their patients from her place in the lounge. A quick check of heartbeats and airflow, enough to know everyone is doing well without getting too invasive. The interns will take care of more in-depth checks, but Kara’s saved a few lives over the years just by keeping an ear out. It pays to be overcautious sometimes.

Just as she’s pulling her hearing back in, Kara catches the faint sound of sirens heading their way. A quick refocusing, and she can hear the faint sound of a child crying, keeping pace with the siren as it moves across the city. They’ve got a little one inbound, and that means Kara’s needed.

“I’m heading down to the ER!” she calls out to the main desk, knowing the nurses there will get the word out. The entire floor is used to her by now, and there are plenty of nurses and doctors around to take care of the light load. Right now, she’s needed elsewhere.

A quick scan of the stairs shows they’re empty, and two seconds later, Kara is walking into the main admitting area for the ER. Winn is at the counter, on the phone with the ambulance approaching, and he waves her down as she enters. “Good timing, I was just about to page you. They’ve got a young one coming in, somewhere between one and three years of age, undetermined issues but definitely needing us.”

The information is strange, and Kara resists the urge to look for the ambulance before it pulls up. She could find it no problem, but her x-ray vision tends to mess with the sensitive medical instruments scattered around, so unless it’s an emergency, she keeps it pulled back. Better to just ask for what she needs to know.

“Why don’t they have a lock on the kid’s age?” she asks, heading to the door to meet her newest patient the second they arrive. One to three years is a major gap, far bigger than the usual fix. Most of the time with kids that young, they can guess down to a few months range.

“Didn’t say, just said small child, one to three years of age, wouldn’t stop screaming and they couldn’t figure out the issue. Figured we might have a little more luck.”

It sounds strange, but Kara knows it’s more common than most people think. The paramedics are good at what they do, but they aren’t prepared to handle every medical issue they see. That’s why they bring patients here, where specialists can take a look and do their best to help.

Without a clear idea of what’s incoming, Kara preps the nearest trauma room with everything she can think of. Better to be over-prepared than under, especially with a child. In her experience, it’s easier for something to go suddenly wrong with a child than with an adult, though she knows a few of her colleagues disagree with that assessment.

She’s prepped just in time, settling the last bit of supplies into place just as the ambulance pulls into the bay. Rushing back out into the main receiving area, she’s joined by James, the lead surgeon staffing the ER today. He’d clearly had the situation explained to him by Winn, and lets Kara take the lead without a word. It’s one of the reasons Kara prefers working with him when she can, as opposed to some of the other rotating ER staff. Days when Siobhan is in charge are rarely fun, and Kara double hates having children come through then. First, because she hates seeing a child in pain and secondly because she hates dealing with Siobhan and her dismissive attitudes.

Much better working with James, who takes his cues from her without complaint. He knows Kara’s the best in the hospital when it comes to working with kids, and he can be most useful as a second set of hands rather than trying to take the lead just because he’s in charge of the ER today.

They meet the gurney at the door, and Kara studies the child carefully to see if she can figure out what’s wrong. There’s no sign of bleeding, but the heartbeat sounds irregular to her ears, and despite the volume of the crying, the child seems lethargic. The paramedics don’t have much to offer either, just a rundown of what stats they were able to get on the way and what they have (and, more importantly, haven’t) done so far. No IVs, no medication administered, heart rate as irregular as Kara’d thought. No one around when they picked the child up, responding to an anonymous 911 call. Whoever this little one is, they don’t have any idea.

“Hey there, little one, you’re okay now,” Kara tries as they get them to a room, hoping her voice will help soothe whatever’s wrong. “I’m just going to lift you to the bed, okay? That way we can check you out, see if we can help you feel better.”

The words don’t seem to do anything, but Kara keeps up a running litany as they settle the gurney next to the exam table and she moves to lift her over.

But as she reaches out, the first big shock of the day hits. The second Kara gets too close, the child pulls their arms and legs in, letting out an even louder scream than before as spikes form on their forearms, keeping Kara away.

“Holy-”

“James, watch your language!”

The admonishment is reflexive, honed by years of working around children. Most of Kara’s focus is on the child, running through the list of species she knows trying to figure out a match. And when she’s pretty sure she knows what species she’s working with, whether she knows the language.

Unfortunately, the Khex language isn’t one of the dozen or so she’d been taught as a child, not even the basics. But if she remembers right, that section of space often used one of the main trade languages she had learned. It’s a long shot whether this little one is old enough to be familiar with it, but she can hope.

_ “Little one, we mean you no harm,” _ Kara says, pulling her hands back and keeping James away from the table. The spikes shouldn’t be dangerous beyond being poked with them, but when they still aren’t sure what’s wrong with the kid, she can’t be sure of that. And James being infected with an alien disease wouldn’t go over well with the others in the hospital, especially those who still aren’t happy Kara’s on the staff. They aren’t the majority, especially now that Kara’s proved her worth. Still, they can get vocal any time they’re given an opening.

This time her words do seem to help, the spikes receding and the crying slacking off just a bit. It’s not much, but Kara will take what she can.

_ “I just need to put you on this table to figure out what’s wrong and help you get better, is that okay?” _

This time the words definitely help, and the child relaxes as their crying slacks off and stops.  _ “I don’t want hurt.” _

_ “I promise, I only want to help you feel better,”  _ Kara says, her heart breaking a little at the mistrust in the words. She thinks the paramedic’s guess of three might be low, though she can’t tell for sure. She knows enough to recognize a Khex, but not enough to know their physiology in depth. The child is intelligent and aware, but that doesn’t mean much. Kryptonian children learn quickly, speaking in full sentences and doing basic math by the time they’re one. That’s mostly due to the years of tinkering with genomes and brain chemistry by their scientists, but it’s proof enough that you can’t make assumptions by comparing one alien species to another.

_ “You promise you won’t use the pointy things? The pointy things always hurt so much.” _

Kara can’t help clenching her hands as a bolt of rage shoots through her, something James doesn’t miss. A quick translation has just as much anger crossing his face. They’re both familiar with what faces aliens without a support network in the city, but this is the first time the scientists have taken a child. Then Kara turns back to the child to answer.

_ “This is a hospital, do you know what that is?” _ she asks first, rather than answering directly. At a hesitant nod, she continues.  _ “We do have pointy things here, but I promise we don’t use them in a way that will deliberately hurt.” _

She’s losing them, Kara can tell. Knowing ‘pointy things’ are around them is too much. Not that Kara blames them, knowing what she does about those so-called science labs. They’re illegal, and it seems like every month another gets shut down, but more are still out there.

Not knowing what else to do, Kara starts singing one of her favorite nursery rhymes, the gentle Kryptonian melody filling the room and giving them both something else to focus on. It helps, just as much as hearing a language they’d understood, and Kara keeps singing until they’ve fully relaxed again.

_ “I’m Kara,” _ she tries once they’re both quiet, focusing on something other than the pointy things.  _ “What’s your name?” _

A moment of thought, then an answer in a quiet voice.  _ “Imih.” _

_ “It’s nice to meet you, Imih. How old are you?” _

Another moment, then  _ “four.” _

Older than the paramedics thought indeed, though Kara can see why they’d thought younger was possible. Imih is small, much smaller than a human four-year-old. Whether because Khex are smaller than humans, or because she’d undernourished, Kara can’t tell yet. But between not responding to English and the possibility the paramedics saw the same spikes Kara accidentally brought out, one to three was a decent approximation.

_ “Imih, can you tell me if you hurt anywhere?” _

It’s easier this way, Kara decides. Easier to ask rather than examine herself, at least for now. With luck, she’ll be able to find more information on Khex physiology later and do a more thorough check, but for now, it’s important that Imih feels some control over the situation.

_ “My chest hurts. It started hurting yesterday before the scary men let me out.” _

Kara wants to fly off and find whatever scary men dared do this to a child, but that’s not her path. She’d realized that long ago, no matter how it still chafes. She does more good here, in the hospital, than she could as a vigilante. Assuming she could do any good as a vigilante and wouldn’t end up right where Imih just escaped from. That much is far from certain.

_ “If I promise no pointy things, can I take a look? We just need to move you to this bed instead of the one you’re on, then we can head to another room so I can check on you.” _

This time it takes longer for Imih to decide, and Kara keeps a careful ear on their heartbeat. If their chest is hurting, combined with the irregular heartbeat she can hear, that’s not a good sign. She really needs to check the files for anything she can find on Khex children.

At the eventual nod, Kara turns back to James and fills him in, sending him off to prep the special lead-lined x-ray room. The hospital has several different x-ray suites throughout the building, but one of the ER rooms and the one on the pediatric floor are specially designed to keep Kara’s x-ray vision from interfering with the surrounding rooms. She can see more, faster, than the traditional machines. It’s a great help when time is of the essence but limited in use because she can’t share what she sees with anyone else.

As she’s getting Imih settled on the hospital bed so the paramedics can grab their gurney, Kara feels more than hears a familiar heartbeat come up behind her. Even without listening, she can always hear this one, and she smiles a little without realizing it.

“Lucy said you had a new case down here.”

“Yeah, this little one here is Imih.” Switching back to trade speak, Kara finishes the introduction. _ “Imih, this is Cat. She’s my wife.” _

Imih takes a second to study Cat before turning back to Kara. _ “I thought only boys could have a wife.” _

Kara can’t help but smile at that, used to the reaction from the younger kids in her ward.  _ “No, anyone can have a wife. And I have one of the prettiest, don’t you think?” _

Imih thinks that over, then nods.  _ “If girls can have wives too, can I have a pretty wife when I get older?” _

Well, that answers one question, Kara thinks as she nods back.  _ “If that’s what you want, then I’m sure you can have a very pretty wife when you get older.” _

“I see Lucy left out a few details,” Cat says when they pause and she can get a word in. “I know you’re the best doctor in this place for alien care, but if you need any help, just let me know.”

They’re both far too aware than a number of their colleagues aren’t as open-minded as they are, and Cat has offered the same in the past. This time, of course, she’s working with James so that isn’t a problem. But he’s in charge of the entire ER, so if Cat is available then that frees him up to keep monitoring. And really, why would Kara ever turn down a chance to work with her wife? Especially on a possible heart issue, Cat’s specialty.

“I’d love your help. James went to prep the x-ray room, this little one has an irregular heartbeat. She’s very frightened of pointy things though, do you think you can help make sure the room is clear before we get there?”

As always, that’s all Kara needs to say for Cat to pick up most of the situation. They’re good at reading each other after years of marriage, and Kara’s anger isn’t well hidden. Especially to someone who knows her every mood by now.

With little more than a nod, Cat heads to help James before taking over so he can get back to the ER. She’s officially on the case now, and as head of the cardiac surgery department, she’s unlikely to get pulled for anything else. Especially if cardio is as empty as it sounded. Alex can handle anything that comes up unless it’s a major case, and even then Cat will likely only be pulled if it’s someone important enough to warrant the ‘famous Cat Grant’ taking the lead.

_ “Okay, Imih, they’re getting the other room ready. So I’m just going to wheel the bed out of here and into that room. You’ll be perfectly safe, I promise.” _

Imih doesn’t seem convinced, but apparently Kara’s earned enough trust that she doesn’t argue. Instead, she curls up again, though her spikes don’t make a repeat appearance. Kara is grateful for that, the sight of a pediatric surgeon wheeling a small child through the halls won’t attract attention. But a pediatric surgeon wheeling an obvious alien child through the hallways? Kara might be certain of her ability to protect Imih, but it’s better to avoid that altogether if possible.

Thankfully the trip goes smoothly, with Kara keeping up a running commentary of explanations as they pass each station, interjected with explanations of what will happen once they reach x-ray. Imih settles even further when Kara promises there won’t be even any machines used, just Kara looking at her very carefully to check for anything that’s hurting her. 

Kara really hopes they don’t find anything major, but if they do she’s going to really hope the amount of trust she’s building is enough to keep Imih from going hysterical again. It’s much easier to treat someone who’s willing to work with you, even if Kara thinks the limits of that will likely be very small, if they exist at all. At least Imih seems to like Cat, which means Kara won’t be completely on her own if the worst-case turns out to be reality.

_ “And, here we are!” _

The specialized x-ray room is simple, even more so now that Cat and James have emptied it of anything that might alarm Imih. The walls are cheerfully painted, hiding the lead lining behind a protective layer to keep anything from bleeding through and affecting humans or aliens with lead sensitivity. On the walls are a few generic paintings, one of which hides the interface Kara uses to access the database rescued from her pod. It’s an invaluable tool when handling alien physiologies, and it’s limited to the special x-ray rooms, one of the ORs, and one of the main labs on the pediatric floor. Access is also greatly limited, only Kara herself, as well as Alex and Cat, can get in without Kara being present. They don’t get enough alien patients in the hospital for Kara to open it up anymore, not when that increases the risk of the information leaking outside the hospital itself.

Paranoid, perhaps, but better safe than sorry.

James is already gone, but Cat looks up with a smile as they enter. “Hello, Imih,” she says, voice soft in the way Kara only hears when they’re alone. Alone, or with only one of her peds patients to hear.

_ “Is that a greeting?” _

_ “Yes, she says hello. Would you like to say it back?” _

After Imih gives her agreement, Kara walks her through the pronunciation and meaning before letting her try.

“Hello, Miss Cat.”

“Are you ready for Kara to take a look at you?”

Kara quickly translates, noticing the careful look on Imih’s face as she matches Cat’s words to Kara’s translation. Whatever the reason she didn’t know English before, Kara’s certain she’ll pick it up quickly.

Which reminds her, she needs to check her database for everything available on Khex children. It only takes a second, and she’s relieved to see that other than a few quirks, like the spikes, Khex are built incredibly similar to humans. Any lab tests will need baselines adjusted, and certain anesthesias aren’t effective, but for the most part, Kara doesn’t have to worry about adjusting anything for Imih. She can even use human plasma if needed, though a full blood transfusion might be harder. Only one specific type of human blood is compatible, though thankfully, it isn’t extremely rare. She’ll just have to be very careful should the need arise.

Everything ready and researched, Kara waves Cat away from where she’d been singing a soft lullaby to Imih. It’s the same one Kara’d sung earlier, and she can tell it helps Imih remain calm to hear the Kryptonian words. She’d probably heard too much English, all without translation, for too long. And English is nothing like trade speak, or the few examples Kara sees in the basic database entry. Kryptonian really isn’t either, but at least all the languages share a more melodic style than the abrupt words and hard consonants of English.

_ “I’m going to look now, okay, Imih? It’ll just take a second, and I promise it won’t hurt. Just sit up straight with your legs in front of you, and keep your arms at your sides.” _ Kara repeats herself in Kryptonian and English, hoping the distraction of trying to match the translations will help. 

A quick scan shows a few things Kara will want to check later, and most concerning, a slight build-up of fluid around her heart. She could probably fix it without surgery, assuming there isn’t an underlying issue she can’t see without a better scan, but that would require Imih to be awake while Kara used a very pointy thing. And there are even odds she’d need surgery anyway later.

Not ideal. But Kara isn’t sure whether Imih will understand the options enough for that to matter.

Still, she’s a smart kid. From the files, Kara knows Khex children learn faster than human children for the first ten years of life, though the difference levels off through teenage years. It’s possible that with a careful explanation, combined with what trust Kara’s earned, it might be enough.

Kara has to hope it is, because the alternative isn’t fun. If Imih feels betrayed by whatever happens next, she might never trust again. It’s a heavy burden, and not one Kara enjoys. And not a decision she wants to make on her own.

Pulling Cat to the opposite side of the room from Imih, Kara explains what she saw, keeping her language far more technical than she usually does around her patients. On the off chance Imih has picked up more English than she thinks, that should be enough to keep her from understanding until Kara’s ready to try explaining to her.

“You have to ask her,” Cat says when Kara finishes explaining. “You have to let it be her choice.”

It’s nothing Kara hadn’t already known, but she’s still hesitant. Even a very smart 4-year-old is too young to make informed decisions about her own care. But Cat is right. It has to be Imih’s choice if there’s any chance they can keep her trust.

Crossing the room again, Kara takes a deep breath before she starts to explain.

_ “Imih, I’m done looking. Remember, I said I was going to look very carefully so I could try to see what was wrong? Well, I got a good look, and there’s something wrong with your heart. I think the bad people with the pointy things might have caused it.” _

Imih tenses at the mention of the people she’d escaped, her arms and legs tucking back in around her torso as she curls in on herself.  _ “I don’t like that they made my chest hurt.” _

Kara nods, knowing exactly how Imih feels. She doesn’t much like the thought of the bad people either. But this isn’t about that, this is about Imih and taking care of what’s wrong with her right now. Kara can fix a heart right now, but the rest will take longer.

_ “Well, I’m a doctor, a good doctor. And I can fix whatever they did. But it means putting you to sleep for a bit, so I can do that.” _

Thinking a minute, Imih relaxes a little.  _ “How do you fix it?” _

This is the moment of truth, and Kara takes a deep breath in preparation.  _ “First, like I said, we put you to sleep. Then we make sure you won’t feel any pain, because we want to fix you, not hurt you. Once you’re asleep, we have to take a look at your heart so we can find exactly what’s wrong and fix it. To do that, we do something called surgery. Do you know what that is?” _

From the way Imih starts to shake, Kara knows she does. This explanation is getting away from her, and any second now she’s going to lose all the headway she’s made in calming the girl down.  _ “Imih, we aren’t going to do anything unless you tell us we can,” _ she tries, hoping the choice will help.  _ “I promise we will never hurt you. And we won’t let anyone else hurt you, either. We have to use a few pointy things to help you, but then that’s it. We fix the problem, and then we don’t have to use them again.” _

It’s more definitive than Kara prefers to be, knowing how fickle health and medicine can be. But right now, it’s what Imih needs to hear. She can explain the exceptions later, once she calms down a little.

Slowly, so slowly, Imih’s shaking stops.  _ “You aren’t going to hurt me?” _

_ “No, Imih. Never. I promise that. I can’t promise nothing will ever hurt again, and I can’t promise you won’t be sore while you recover, but I promise the only reason I’d do this is to make you better.” _

Imih thinks about that for a moment, then looks up at Kara with a fierce look on her face.  _ “Why do you want to fix me, when the other doctors just wanted to hurt me?” _

Knowing this might be the answer that tips Imih one way or the other, Kara thinks very carefully about her next words. She doubts whatever Rao-forsaken lab the girl was stuck in has doctors worth the name, but it’s entirely possible there were enough visual similarities that Imih is having trouble separating the two places. 

_ “I think the other doctors were angry,” _ Kara says as she decides how to answer.  _ “They don’t like anyone not like them, and they don’t like us being here with them. So they aren’t very nice to us. But they still wish they could do everything we can, so they study us. And they don’t care if it hurts.” _

_ “Us?” _

That’s when Kara realizes she hasn’t explained who she is other than her name and that she’s married to Cat. She’s so used to her Kryptonian heritage being an open secret around the hospital that she didn’t realize she hadn’t told Imih the similarities in their backgrounds.

_ “Yes, us. I’m from Krypton, do you know where that is?” _

It’s a bit of a long shot, but Khex isn’t far from Krypton in galactic standards. Even with Krypton’s destruction before the girl was born, she might have heard of the planet before coming to Earth.

But Kara sees no flash of recognition in Imih’s eyes, so she tries something else.  _ “You know how you can make spikes on your arms?” _ A hesitant nod. _ “Well, that’s because you’re a Khex. I’m a Kryptonian, so I can’t do that, but I can do something else humans can’t.”  _ With that, Kara spares a quick look towards the door to make sure it’s still firmly shut, and drifts into the air.

She usually tries to avoid any blatant uses of her powers, anything someone could see and put together, but she’s hoping the obvious use of an alien ability will help convince Imih she’s actually an alien too. And that’s worth the small risk of someone seeing. After all, her coworkers all know, and plenty of their patients do as well. Plus, Cat’s here with her. And if Kara’s judged for her planet of origin, well. No one is brave enough to say that where Cat can hear them. Not unless they want banned from the operating rooms for a week.

Back on the ground, Kara leans close to Imih.  _ “So, what do you say? Will you let me fix your heart?” _

_ “Will Miss Cat be there too?” _

Kara wants to laugh at how taken Imih is with her wife, but she knows it’s the wrong time for that. _ “Do you want her to be? I could use her help, surgery goes better when you have more people, but it’s up to you, remember?” _

A moment of deep thought, but Kara can tell Imih is considering it.  _ “How many people do you need, if I let you?” _

Taking that as a good sign, Kara runs through the surgery in her head. As a teaching hospital, there’s often a crowd in the operating room as the interns and residents get hands-on practice. But not always, and she can tell Imih will be more comfortable with a smaller number. 

They’ll need an anesthesiologist for sure, and at least one person to act as a nurse. Cat can handle helping Kara and monitoring the monitors, especially if Alex agrees to act as a nurse so they have another trained cardiac surgeon in the room. It’ll be tight, but between Kara’s abilities and Cat and Alex’s combined cardio talent, she thinks they can do it. And if Lucy is free enough to gossip, she should be free enough to act as their anesthesiologist.

_ “I think four will do, and that’s just me, my wife, my sister, and my sister’s girlfriend. All people I know and trust.” _

_ “Is your sister Kryptonian too?” _

_ “No, her family adopted me when I landed here, and they took very good care of me. It’s why I became a doctor. Alex and I both wanted to help people, and thought this was the best way to do it.” _

Imih looks a little disappointed that Alex isn’t an alien too, but not disappointed enough to change her mind. Unless Kara’s lost all ability to read children, she’s decided to go along with the surgery.

_ “And just the four of you?” _

_ “Yeah, I think we can do it with four,” _ Kara says, thinking hard. She has to be honest to keep Imih’s trust, but she doesn’t want to blurt out the next thing too bluntly.  _ “We usually have at least five, but the four of us are very good, and I promise it’ll be just us unless we need someone else to help.” _

Imih has to think about it, and Kara smiles to see the childish mannerisms she’s used to from her patients slip out. In many ways, Imih acts like a small adult, despite her age. But at times like this, Kara can tell she’s just a child. A child who needs help, help that she’s going to get. Whatever it takes, Kara is going to make sure of that.

_ “Okay.” _

Kara’s smile lights up the small room, and she has to hold herself back from pulling Imih into a hug. It’s clear the girl doesn’t like physical contact, so Kara knows exactly how big of a deal it is that she agreed. The last thing she wants to do is ruin that by pushing boundaries.

“She says yes to the surgery,” Kara tells Cat, though it’s clear she’d caught the gist just from her smile. “Will you go book an OR?”

“ _ And _ track down your sister and better Lane while I’m at it.”

Shaking her head at the familiar joke, Kara turns back to Imih and starts explaining what’s going to happen. She’ll prep the girl herself, not leaving her alone until after she’s met the others and they’ve scrubbed in. Since Imih likes Cat, Kara’s hoping they’ll be okay for the five minutes it takes her to scrub in herself.

Thanks to the slow day booking and prepping the OR takes no time at all, and Kara finds herself grateful for that. She wants to give Imih a good description of what’s going to happen and how she’ll probably feel after the surgery. But if they had too much time the little girl might dwell on it too much, causing second thoughts.

Instead, the explanation seems to help. Imih is relaxing as Kara answers each of her questions, even the ones about Krypton and her family here. It’s nice, being able to talk about her home planet with another alien. Even a child. She can talk with Alex and Cat, obviously, but they react like adults. Loving and supportive, but rarely spontaneous and enthralled by descriptions of crystal mountains Kara grew up seeing in the distance. It’s nice, remembering the happy and simple times. She doesn’t do it enough, and she wonders if maybe incorporating tales of other planets would be a hit for the pediatric ward storytimes. It’s always hard to tell what will set off an argument with the people that don’t like her.

Thanks to the stories, Kara even manages to get a few vials of blood from Imih and send them off for rush testing before the operation. Given the reputation of most National City’ labs’ these days, it’s an important precaution. Both for Imih’s safety and the others.

When every test comes back negative, Kara breathes a sigh of relief before asking Imih if she can give her a hug. She’s held off this long, but Kara’s a tactile person, and she knows the girl needs some positive contact in her life, to overcome whatever happened to her. Letting her set the pace is a good compromise, and good for them both.

Soon after that, everything is prepped and ready to go, and Kara introduces Imih to Alex and Lucy. She takes to them just as quickly as she did to Cat, and Kara doesn’t even try to hide her smile at the way Alex’s usually tough exterior melts as Imih introduces herself in careful English.

There’s a moment of worry when Kara has to leave, but she promises Imih she’ll be right back, and that Cat will be right by her side the whole time. After that, it’s a simple matter of scrubbing in, and she’s back in the room.

_ “See, Imih, I told you it wouldn’t take long,” _ Kara says when she comes back in.  _ “Are you ready?” _

Usually, Lucy would’ve started the anesthesia, but with an alien child, they aren’t taking any risks. Kara will be in the room for everything, and Cat made sure to book the OR with the AI interface in case Kara needs specific knowledge while they operate. And Alex double and triple checked the blood they’d ordered to make sure it was the right type, every bag of it.

Imih shivers slightly, but nods with a determined look on her face. Kara’d explained what happens next carefully while they prepped, so she doesn’t flinch when Lucy lowers the mask, just breathes deeply and lets the anesthesia work. Soon enough she’s out like a light, and Kara steps up to begin.

She’s worked with Cat often enough that they know each other’s moves, and the tricky first moments of the surgery go quickly. Kara’s careful to point out the relevant quirks of Khex physiology, and then they settle in to track down the problem and fix it.

“How long do you think this will take?” Cat asks as they work, helping Kara with an ease that feels like they’re dancing together.

“Probably no more than three hours unless we find something weird,” Kara decides after a moment. “We take care of the problem, then we find the cause and take care of that too.”

A quick break as they deal with a sudden bleeder, and then Cat speaks up again. “Well then, we have another two and a half hours. We should use it. Will you teach me some of her language? It’ll be easier if you’re not the only one who can understand her.”

It shouldn’t surprise Kara, how thoughtful Cat can be. She knows the ice-cold surgeon person is just a facade, nothing like the real Cat beneath the masks. And yet every time she sees proof of how deeply Cat cares, she falls a little more in love.

Alex and Lucy quickly chime in their agreement, and the next two hours go quickly as Kara walks them through the basics of the trade language. She’ll have to study the Khex language itself later. They’re lucky Imih is fairly fluent in trade speak, but there are still limitations. Kara’s had to find different words a few times today while explaining something.

Finally they’re done, and Kara takes a quick peek at Imih’s heart once they’ve closed her back up. It’s a little riskier than usual, since the OR isn’t shielded and there’s sensitive equipment around, but a quick glance won’t hurt anything. Better to know everything looks good before they leave the OR than find out later that something went wrong.

But everything looks good, and Kara thinks this surgery might be some of her best work. Hers, and Cat’s too. Imih had quickly wormed her way into Kara’s heart, and she knows she isn’t the only one. Every one of her little family here would undoubtedly fight for the girl, no matter that they’d barely met. And Cat would fight hardest of all.

A quick check with their respective departments shows the slow day is continuing, and Kara lets her team know she’ll be with a post-op patient for a while. She’ll miss afternoon storytime with the rest of her patients, but she’d promised she wouldn’t leave Imih alone. Even if Alex and Cat are waiting with her, Kara’s not going anywhere.

_ “Kara?” _

The voice is groggy, but clear enough to snap Kara out of her half doze and into full alertness, jolting Cat where her wife had snuggled into her side. Across the room, Alex sits up too, rubbing her eyes with a yawn.

_ “Hey there little one, how are you feeling?” _

The language lessons seem to have paid off, Kara can tell the words are understood by everyone in the room as she leans forward and waits for Imih’s answer.

_ “I’m a little sore, just like you said. But I don’t hurt the way I did when the other doctors did something.” _

Oh yeah, that one was definitely understood. Alex and Cat both look ready to storm out of the room and find someone to smack for daring to hurt this little girl, and Kara’s tempted to be right behind them. But their concern for Imih outweighs their need to storm out, and they all three stay put.

_ “The soreness is normal,”  _ Cat says in accented trade speak, getting a look of surprise from Imih.  _ “If it starts hurting more, just tell us, and we’ll help.” _

They’d spent a good portion of the language lesson learning the words necessary for that to work, and Kara’s glad to see it’s paid off. Now there are three people in the hospital she can trust to look after Imih while she’s recovering, which is far better than the alternatives. It might take some shift juggling, but they’ll make sure someone is always with her.

Before Kara can reiterate her promise that they’ll be there for her, the door opens, and a woman walks in. She isn’t a doctor or anyone familiar to Kara. Dressed in a modest pantsuit, she’s carrying a clipboard and frowning down at something on it.

“Is this the right room? I was told an alien child was dropped off without documentation earlier today, and she just finished surgery?” The woman looks around the room, ignoring Imih where she’s resting. It’s clear she’s looking for a visibly alien child, probably imagining something out of some ridiculous horror movie.

Kara immediately dislikes her, and she can tell Cat feels the same from the way her wife tenses. She can’t see Alex’s reaction but assumes it’s similar. Whoever this woman is, whatever her reason for being here, Kara’s already ready to fight her on it.

“I think you’re looking for Imih here,” she says, forcing a vaguely pleasant tone into her voice as she stands. “I’m Dr. Grant, the pediatric surgeon who led the operation. This is my wife, the cardiothoracic surgeon who assisted.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize. We didn’t get a description of the child before I was sent down here.” Fumbling with her clipboard for a moment, the woman eventually gives up and looks at Kara instead. “I’m Ms. Luthor, with child services.”

“Hello.”

Kara doesn’t offer anything more, and she can practically feel Cat’s smirk next to her as Ms. Luthor looks thrown by the abrupt greeting as the earlier pleasantness fades. It takes her a second to recover, then she launches into what sounds like a prepared speech.

“As I said, I understand the child has just finished surgery to diagnose and correct a heart issue. We will need documentation for the surgery and a timeline on when you think the child will be released from the hospital and into child services’ custody. A list of any necessary medications should also be provided along with care instructions for any incisions. If there are special considerations given the child’s alien status, we would appreciate those specifics as well.”

Imih is already shrinking back from the no-nonsense woman, looking to Kara for a translation and support. The translation is easy enough, and Kara can’t push down a flash of amusement when she sees Ms. Luthor’s eyes widen in shock at hearing the alien language. Serves her right, calling Imih ‘the child’ instead of her name after Kara told her.

“Ms Luthor, may I ask what will happen to Imih now? Have you had any luck tracking down her parents?” Cat smoothly takes the lead as Kara translates, moving closer to the hospital bed and lowering her voice so she can provide a running translation for Imih. Cat is far better equipped for a war of words than Kara is, and it’s always entertaining to watch.

The shift in position allows Kara to see Alex again, and she pushes down a smile at the look of anticipation on her sister’s face. When pushed too far, Cat has a way of going off on you that sparks legends through the hospital every time. They’re still talking about the time she made an entire intern group cry after a prank went wrong and nearly cost Cat a patient, and that was over a decade ago.

“No, we haven’t had any luck or any reports of the child’s parents,” Ms. Luthor says, flipping through the pages on her clipboard in a patently fake way. “And there’s no indication of why they dropped her off at a hospital in the first place.”

Kara’s disbelief only slightly outweighs her anger. The woman makes it sound like her parents abandoned her, rather than someone finding Imih after she was released from wherever she was held. 

“Given that we’ve had no success with locating them, the child will go into state custody and be placed in a temporary foster home until suitable arrangements can be made.”

Cat’s quick glance proves they’re on the same page, and Kara doesn’t hesitate more than that second before jumping back in. “We’ll look after her.”

Alex and Ms. Luthor both look at her in shock, Alex pleased and Luthor indignant. Kara doesn’t care about Ms. Luthor’s reaction, but she’s glad to see Alex is on board with the plan, vague as it is.

“I appreciate the sentiment, Ms. Grant-”

“Doctor.”

Thrown by the interruption, Ms. Luthor stops for a moment. “I’m sorry?”

“Doctor. Doctor Grant. The scrubs are usually a tip-off there.”

She’s being rude, but Kara doesn’t care. Who is this woman to storm in and belittle her, dismiss Imih entirely, and then decide what will happen to the girl? There’s no way Kara’s just going to accept that. And even if Kara is usually a lot more easygoing, you don’t marry Cat Grant without picking up a little bite when the situation calls for it.

“Doctor. My mistake. But as I was saying, while I appreciate the sentiment, there are processes in place. We can’t simply release a child into your care.”

Cat cuts in again, eyes flashing as she moves closer to Ms. Luthor. “Oh, we have our emergency foster care license. It’s a strong recommendation for any doctor in this hospital, for situations just like this.”

That’s stretching it a bit, but Kara knows they aren’t the only doctors in the hospital with a license like that. It does make certain scenarios much easier, and especially in the pediatric ward, it’s more common than not.

Taking advantage of the argument that’s brewing, Kara quickly explains what’s going on to Imih.  _ “They couldn’t find your parents, so we have to find a place for you to go. Miss Cat and I offered to let you stay with us for now, we just have to convince Ms. Luthor that it’s a good idea.” _

Imih frowns, but reaches out her arms for Kara to give her a hug. She can’t move much yet, not without pulling her stitches, but that doesn’t matter when Kara goes willingly.

_ “My parents are still on Khex. They didn’t come with me.” _

There’s a whole lot of pain in the words, pain Kara knows all too well. She doesn’t know the full story, but she knows enough. Imih needs her, and that’s all that matters.

“Excuse me, Ms. Luthor?” she cuts in, silencing the argument for a moment. “Imih here says her parents didn’t make the journey to Earth, which makes finding permanent guardianship more complicated. But Cat and I would be willing to look after her, at least in the short term and possibly longer, and Imih trusts us to do so. Sending her to someone else when she doesn’t even speak English yet feels incredibly irresponsible.”

Luthor looks flustered, and Kara feels a rush of glee at seeing her so discomforted. “Well, that is highly irregular, and I’m afraid I can’t authorize that.”

“Then send someone who can.”

Alex speaks up for the first time from her chair, pulling Luthor’s attention. “If you can’t release a child into qualified care that’s highly specialized and uniquely fit for that child’s situation, then send someone who  _ can  _ do their job. Imih deserves someone who will look out for her.”

Facing opposition from three directions, Luthor shows some intelligence and quickly excuses herself. Hopefully, they’ll send someone better suited to this particular case, but if not, Kara isn’t too worried. She’ll get Clark on the case if she needs to, shamelessly calling in family connections to get the best lawyer in Metropolis working for them. Whatever it takes to get Imih taken care of.

“Did we just agree to adopt a child?” Cat asks when Luthor is gone, a smile on her face even though she looks vaguely shocked.

Alex quickly excuses herself, offering to find the relevant papers they’ll need to take custody of Imih, and Kara waves her thanks before focusing back on Cat.

“I mean, we’ve talked about adopting a few times, but the time never felt right. I think it does this time.”

Cat nods and steps closer, looking down at Imih with a smile. “Why don’t you ask her what she thinks?”

Kara’s pretty sure she knows the answer from the way Imih is grasping at her, but she knows Cat has a point. Imih deserves a voice in the decision.

_ “Imih, would you like to stay with Cat and I?” _

_ “You won’t make me go with the mean lady?” _

_ “No, sweet one. We won’t make you go with her. Do you remember what I told you about how Alex and I became sisters?” _

Imih scrunches her face up as she thinks back, and Kara thinks it’s the cutest thing she’s seen all day.  _ “You said her family adopted you.” _

_ “That’s right. And if you want, Cat and I want to adopt you.” _

Imih’s grip, which had loosened slightly, tightens to more than before as she pulls Kara closer. It’s enough for Kara to worry about her incision, but Imih doesn’t flinch or cry out, and Kara relaxes after a moment. 

_ “Is that a yes?”  _ Cat asks with a laugh, obviously following the vague gist of the conversation. They’ll really have to step up the language lessons. English, trade speak, Kryptonian, and Khex are all on the list of things for someone to learn.

_ “It’s a yes.” _

Imih’s voice is muffled, but there’s no mistaking the happiness in it. Happiness mirrored on both Kara and Cat’s faces as they smile at each other.

It’s strange, they’d never expected this end to their day when they’d arrived at the hospital. And yet it feels right, it feels perfect. As if it’s the only way today could have gone.

And neither would change it for anything.


End file.
